The political controversy over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the voter list in Karnataka has deepened. Minister Satish Jarkiholi described the process as fair, while other Congress leaders raised questions over alleged irregularities. BJP has targeted the opposition calling it a political contradiction of Congress.

Tezzbuzz Desk – In Karnataka, politics continues to be heated regarding the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the voter list. Amid the removal of names of around one crore voters in the state, Public Works Minister and Congress leader Satish Jarkiholi on Thursday said that the SIR process was completed properly after the training given by the Congress. After his statement the controversy has deepened again. BJP is attacking Congress, while some leaders of Congress are raising questions on Jarkiholi's statement.

This statement of Minister Satish Jarkiholi has come just before the Congress-led mega rally to be held at Ramlila Maidan in Delhi on November 1. The purpose of this rally is to raise voice against the alleged 'vote theft' through the SIR process being conducted by the Election Commission. Jarkiholi says Congress did not oppose SIR in Karnataka, but raised concerns over the way it was implemented in other states.

Jarkiholi said, “We did not oppose SIR in Karnataka, but had raised many questions regarding the SIR process in states like West Bengal, Maharashtra, Bihar etc. Due to the training given by us, the SIR work could be done properly in Karnataka.” He further said that he wants similar work to be done in other states also.

On the issue of deletion of names of about one crore voters in the state, Jarkiholi said that these include those who have died, who have moved somewhere else or whose names were registered twice. He said that such work should be done in other places also.

Recently, the State Election Commission had released the voter list, from which 99.32 lakh names were removed. Due to this, the number of voters in the state reduced from 5.54 crore to 4.55 crore. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, state party president BK Hariprasad and other leaders objected to this, while Jarkiholi termed the SIR process as correct and said that he had no objection to it.

After Jarkiholi's statement, other Congress leaders had to clarify on this issue. Karnataka minister Priyank Kharge questioned his assessment and pointed to alleged irregularities in Form-7 applications used to remove names from the voter list.

Kharge said, “I don't know what kind of information Jarkiholi has. For example, around 40 people of a particular community were targeted at a single booth in Chittapur. When the returning officers investigated it, it was found that there were a large number of pre-printed Form-7s present there. No one knew where these came from. The person who had submitted the Form-7 himself did not know why he had done so. He simply said that Said that 'it has come from above'.”

Calling it a deep conspiracy, Kharge said that its roots are spread everywhere and it is completely centralized. He said that this matter will be taken to the bottom. He alleged that many people in Vijayapura were wrongly declared dead in the applications to remove names from the voter list.

According to Kharge, Form-7 was submitted to remove the names of more than 40 to 50 people declared dead in Vijaypura. He said that the people concerned complained to the District Magistrate and claimed that he was alive. Kharge said that he was making his point on the basis of the incidents that unfolded in Kalaburagi and other parts of the state.

Another Karnataka minister, Santosh Lad, also strongly criticized the SIR process, calling it a 'fraud'. He alleged that this process has benefited BJP in the elections. Lad said that in the elections held through ballot paper, BJP lost 14 out of 28 seats and it also lost in Varanasi. He raised the question that if SIR is impartial, then how will the questions being raised regarding the election results be answered.

At the same time, former Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan targeted the Congress and said that the SIR process in Karnataka has exposed the political contradictions of the party. He said that despite being unfairly targeted by the opposition, the Election Commission has tried to strengthen the voter list through systematic verification across the country.

Pradhan said that in Congress-ruled Karnataka, after verification by the officials of the electoral system—ERO, AERO and BLO—the final voter list was less by about one crore voters as compared to the earlier list. He asked Rahul Gandhi whether Congress would now accuse its own government of irregularities or consider SIR as a legitimate process to protect democracy. Pradhan accused the Congress of selectively criticizing the process based on the election results.

BJP MP Jagadish Shettar also attacked Congress. He said that many Congress leaders know the truth about SIR and claimed that the process has helped the Congress in Kerala. Referring to former state president Ramesh Chennithala and Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, he said that they have also accepted the impact of SIR.

Shettar said that it is being claimed that more than 99 lakh names have been removed from the voter list in Karnataka. He challenged Rahul Gandhi and Chief Minister DK Shivakumar to bring forward at least 10 genuine cases in which names were wrongly removed. He accused Congress of doing propaganda.

The BJP MP also raised questions on Congress's demand to conduct elections through ballot paper. He said that in the Legislative Council elections in Karnataka, the NDA alliance won all four seats, while the Congress did not get a single seat. Shettar claimed that even across the country, the NDA won almost all the MLC seats. He said that despite elections being held through ballot paper, Congress raises questions on EVMs and is creating confusion.